Gone Not Lost
by unicornhime
Summary: When Korra challenged Amon to a duel, he took her bending away. Now she's going to try and get it back.
1. Chapter 1

**Chapter One**

Bolin peered down the ladder that led to the attic apartment he shared with his brother. He saw a young girl in airbender robes clutching a letter, with red-rimmed eyes.

"Jinora? What's wrong?" He slid down the ladder to stand on the landing beside her.

"Korra…Korra wanted me to give this to you," she shoved the folded letter at him.

"What is this? Did something happen to her?"

She looked at him incredulously as Mako poked his head down the ladder as well. "What's going on?" He asked.

"Haven't you heard?" Jinora's voice wavered. "Korra challenged Amon to a duel."

The brothers exchanged a look. They were both thinking how like Korra that was, but also how stupid. She was bound to run out of luck sometime when it came to dealing with the equalists.

It seemed like that time had come.

"She told him to meet her out on Avatar Aang Memorial Island. Alone, and she refused to let anyone come with her." She took a deep breath. "He ambushed her there. "

"What?" Bolin gasped.

"Is she okay?"

Jinora shook her head. "He took her bending away."

A stunned silence fell over the three benders, each trying to imagine what it would be like to live without their own bending, trying to imagine the pain Korra must be in.

Jinora was the first to break the silence. "She wanted me to give this to you," she held out the letter again. "I don't know what it says, but it probably has to do with her not being able to fight with the fire ferrets anymore."

"Like we care about that right now!" Bolin exclaimed. "We have to go see her!"

The young airbender shook her head. "She's not letting anyone near her right now. She's shut herself up in her room, and I heard my father talking about going with her to the South Pole."

"She can't leave!" Mako protested. "What about us? What about her life here?"

"What about you? You didn't even know she was going to fight Amon, did you?" Jinora suddenly turned on them, eyes narrowed. "She's been really quiet ever since she went with you to that rally, and you never even came by to see how she was doing."

"That's not fair," Bolin interjected. "I came to thank –"

"_You_ might have," Jinora cut him off, "but your brother didn't, and _he's _the one she most wanted to see."

Mako stared at her, stunned. "What?"

"I know she cares a lot about both of you, and when you didn't come back to see her, you hurt her," she accused. "She feels like you were just using her as the avatar to get your brother back."

"I would never-"

"And now that she can't bend, she doesn't think you'll want anything to do with her. Especially since you have your new girlfriend."

"My new… just what is Korra telling you?"

"Korra is like a sister to me," she said fiercely. "And what she doesn't tell me, she tells Naga. And Korra's voice carries."

Mako felt like he'd been sucker-punched in the gut. He had no idea what to say.

*Bolin couldn't take it anymore. He ripped the letter open, scanning her hurried handwriting.

"She is leaving," he confirmed with disbelief in his voice and eyes. "As soon as she can, she says. She also says thanks for the opportunity to fight in a real match, and she's sorry she won't be able to compete in the tournament with us. She hopes we find a good replacement since… since she's useless to us now." Bolin looked up at his brother. "Mako, we have to do something."

"What can we do? If Amon took her bending away…"

"Korra is _not_ just her bending," Bolin said. "Come on, we have to go talk to her."

"I told you, she isn't talking to anyone. Besides, there's not another ferry tonight, and I can't fly you both over on my glider."

"Could you fly one of us?" Mako asked, his gaze intense.

Jinora matched his gaze. "Maybe. But I'm not going to help you if you're just going to hurt her more."

"I never meant to hurt her in the first place. The least I can do now is try to make it better, and I have to do something before she's gone for good!"

Jinora stared him down, then nodded. "Alright, I'll try."

Mako followed her to the docks, his thoughts racing. How could he have been so stupid? _He _knew that Korra was more than just the avatar, a means to an end. She'd been the one to insist on helping him! He wanted to do it on his own, the way he always had, but with Bolin's life on the line, he wasn't going to take any chances.

And he was glad he accepted her help, too. He couldn't have gotten Bolin out of there safely on his own, and if Bolin had lost his bending…

Instead, _Korra_ lost _hers. _

He couldn't imagine what she must be going through. All her life, she'd known she was the avatar, and she'd trained since she was very young. She'd been sure to point that out in the few practice sessions they'd had together. And now, all of that, all of those years of training and discipline, just… gone.

And he didn't even know she was putting herself in that kind of danger. He'd known she'd joined Tarrlok's task force, but that was after chi-blockers in training. She'd faced them before and been alright, so while he was worried, he knew she could handle it.

But Amon. Amon was a different story entirely.

'_How could she have been so stupid', _he thought to himself. '_And why weren't Bolin and I there to stop her?_' Even though they hadn't known her long, they were supposed to be a team now. What had gone so terribly wrong?

He almost stumbled as it hit him. Asami. Asami had come into his life and completely distracted him with her beauty and charm. And getting her father to sponsor the fire ferrets in the tournament didn't hurt either. That was just another thing to think about, being able to compete. It was his dream, and a way out of the day-to-day living he eked out with his brother.

And now, that was gone, too. No, he admonished himself, '_You can't think about that right now. How dare you? Korra is the most important thing right now.'_

After a somewhat terrifying flight on Jinora's glider over the bay, they landed on the island and Mako sprinted toward the main compound before realizing he didn't even know where Korra's room was. He stopped short and turned to Jinora, who was following at his heels.

"Come on, I'll show you," she said, knowing exactly what stopped him.

He let her lead the way until they came to a stop at a door. "This is her room," she whispered, "But I don't know if she'll let you in. And, I don't know what Daddy will do if he sees you here, so be careful."

Mako nodded, gulping just a little at the thought of Tenzin. The man was intimidating enough on a normal day.

He knocked at the door, but there was no response. He knocked louder, more insistant. Still nothing.

He frowned, and impulsively he tried the doorknob. The door swung open easily.

Korra was lying on her side on her bed, facing the wall. She knew it was him, though. She always knew when he was around.

"No locks on Air Temple Island," she said flatly.

"Korra," Mako started, his voice full of an emotion he couldn't name.

She didn't turn to face him. "I wrote you guys a letter so you wouldn't have to come all the way out here. Didn't Jinora deliver it?"

"She did," he confirmed.

"Then what are you doing here?"

"Korra," he tried again. "I'm sorry."

"I don't want your pity."

"No, it's not pity. Korra, I'm trying to apologize! I shouldn't have let you –"

"Let me?" She sat up and spun around to glare at him. "You never 'let' me do anything. You have no say over what I do or don't do."

He stalked further into her room, stopped at her bedside. "That's not what I meant and you know it!"

"I don't know anything about what you mean or don't mean. I don't know anything about you!"

That stung. Mako knew he was guarded, but he thought she at least knew his character.

"Korra, please. Korra, just listen…"

"Stop saying my name like you care about me!" She exploded. "Get out of here! I can't bend anymore, so what use am I to you! I can't _bend_…" She broke down, not crying because she refused to do so in front of Mako and she was already cried out, but her frame just collapsed in on itself. She sat on her bed like the husk of the girl she once was.

Mako couldn't bear it. He sat beside her and gathered her up in his arms, like he used to for Bolin when the boy fell and scraped a knee when they were young.

"Korra," he said again, purposely using her name. "I am so sorry I ever made you think that way. And I'm sorry I haven't been around lately. I just got... distracted. I was a horrible teammate and a worse friend."

"When did we become friends?" She sniffed, the question touched with a hint of bitterness.

"You helped me rescue my brother, and then rescued me. Of course you're my friend. I'm just really bad at showing it."

"That's the understatement of the year."

He smiled a little, glad she still had her humor.

"But it still doesn't change the fact that I'm useless now."

The smile slid off his face. He pulled back and placed one hand under her chin, forcing her to look up at him. "You are not useless," he said firmly, holding her pale blue eyes with his fierce amber ones. "You were never useless and you never could be."

"I'm not the avatar anymore."

"That not only doesn't matter, it's simply not true."

She gave him a look of disbelief, but didn't pull away from his touch.

"You're _Korra_. You're a bit crazy, but you're a fast learner, and you're strong, both physically and morally. If anyone can get through this in one piece, it's you."

"You really think that?"

"Of course. You're more than just the avatar. That's just a part of you. You're also human. And I think a lot of people have been forgetting that lately."

She looked at him in silence, contemplating his words. Then she asked in a small voice, "What do I do now?"

Mako thought carefully before answering. "I don't really know," he confessed. "But you can't give us. We don't know how Amon's doing this. If we can figure that out, maybe there's a way to get your bending back. And even if there's not, you don't want to just give up and let him win, do you?"

She frowned and glared at him. "No."

"Then you have to stay in Republic City. You have to stay and fight," he insisted. "Show him and everyone else how strong I know you really are."

"What if I don't know how?" Her voice shook and Mako knew how much the question must cost her.

"No on knows how, why should you be expected to know any different?" He replied. "We'll ask Tenzin, he'll be able to get us started. And we'll figure the rest out as we go along."

She threw her arms back around him and crushed herself against his chest. He returned the warm embrace, hesitantly, but fully.

"You're still a jerk, you know," she said from her place tucked under his chin.

"Believe me, I know."

* * *

_A/N So here is my attempt at a multi-chapter fic. It's still only going to be a few chapters, but still. I hope you like it. Please review! _


	2. Chapter 2

**Chapter Two**

Mako reluctantly left her before Tenzin could discover a boy in his teenaged surrogate daughter's room. Jinora came to fetch him and showed him to a guest room where he slept in fits.

The next morning, Bolin came over on the first ferry. Korra was still asleep, but Mako met him at the pier and told him what had happened.

"Poor Korra," Bolin said, looking over to Aang's Island.

"Yes. But at least she's staying here. And we'll manage to help her somehow."

Pema came out to meet them then and invited them in to breakfast. They ate quietly, listening to Ikki chatter about some bull frogs she found, when Korra wandered in.

She looked considerably better than she had the night before, though still somewhat subdued and the dark circles under her eyes hadn't quite faded.

"Hey Korra," Bolin greeted her hesitantly.

"Bolin." She looked surprised, but not unhappy to see him. "What are you doing here?"

"I wanted to make sure you were okay, of course. Sorry I couldn't come sooner."

She shook her head. "No, thanks for coming."

"Korra, sit down and eat," Pema said, "It's too early to talk about anything just now. After you've all eaten, you can go to Tenzin."

Korra sat and ate. She didn't inhale her food like the brothers expected, but ate slowly and purposefully.

Finally, though, there was nothing more to eat.

"Why don't you go wait out in the courtyard, and I'll go find Tenzin for you," Pema suggested.

"Yeah!" Ikki and Meelo jumped up to tug on the boys' shirt sleeves. "Can you show us some pro-bending moves? Can you can you can you, please?"

The two brothers exchanged looks before glancing at Korra guiltily. They didn't know how she'd react to their being able to bend and fight when she couldn't.

She caught their look. "Don't worry about me, it'll be fun for them." She shrugged. "Let's go, okay?"

The kids cheered and dragged the older boys along.

Mako and Bolin sparred against each other, if a bit half-heartedly, while the young airbenders applauded and watched, their eyes glued to the brothers, and Korra watched the Republic City skyline.

"Jinora, Ikki, Meelo, don't you have your own studies to attend to?" Tenzin asked as he strode toward the ring where they were all gathered. The three groaned, but obediently shuffled off toward the compound.

Once they were alone, Tenzin said, "I've been spending a lot of time thinking about what we need to do, and I've come to the conclusion that we need to find out exactly how Amon is taking away a person's bending, or if he is just _blocking_ it. I suspect what he is doing is simply a more advanced method of chi-blocking, and can be reversed."

Korra jumped up. "Really?"

He nodded. "I want to examine your chakra."

"My what?"

"Your chakra. Usually, we would wait until your training was more complete, but I feel we don't have any other choice. Your chakra are pools of energy within your body. They allow energy to flow throughout your body, and can be blocked by negative energy. Once cleared, though, you should be able to enter the avatar state. At least, that's how it normally works."

"How can I enter the avatar state if I can't bend? What would happen?"

"I don't know," Tenzin admitted. "But I think if we clear your chakra, your bending will return. However," he glanced at the two brothers, "It can be a very emotional and personal experience."

"We'll just, ah, go wait… somewhere," Bolin said quickly.

Mako nodded. "If you're sure you don't need anything else from us now, we'll go back to the arena. So you know where to find us if you need us, okay?" He stepped forward and placed a hand on Korra's shoulder. "And be sure to come get us if you need _anything_, got it?"

She nodded, her face resolute but grateful all the same.

Once the two of them were alone, Tenzin lead Korra up to the meditation pavilion. "Before we get started, I want to make we won't be making things worse. Please sit, and I'll look into your energy."

"Do I need to do anything?"

"No, just focus on your breathing. Slow and steady and in and out. Practice your meditation," he said with a wry smile.

She rolled her eyes.

They both sat, and Korra watched as Tenzin gracefully took up the airbender meditation pose and slip away from the mortal realm. She could tell the moment he was gone from the way he seemed to stop breathing and became as still and unmoving as stone.

Korra didn't even have a moment to try to meditate before Tenzin snapped back to life.

"Change of plans," he said. "I think preparing you to enter the avatar state is just what Amon wants. And it's too dangerous; your energy is coiled up so tight it's a wonder you can function at all."

"What does that mean?" Korra's shoulders slumped in dismay.

"I'm not sure yet. I know it may be hard, but please tell me again about what he did when he took your bending. And what happened at the rally."

The girl shuddered for a moment as the memories flooded back into her brain. "After…after he ambushed me, he pressed his hands to the back of my neck, and then the center of my forehead. It wasn't painful, exactly," she struggled to find the words, "But it felt _wrong."_

"And at the rally?"

"He let Lightning Bolt Zolt fight for the right to keep his bending, but Zolt lost. Amon dodged every attack, and did the same thing to him as he did to me. Put his hands on his neck and forehead, and Zolt's lightning turned to fire, then to nothing. He couldn't bend anymore."

"The lightning turned to fire first? You're sure of it?"

"Yes," she looked confused. "Is that important?"

"Oh yes. If Amon were truly taking bending away, the lightning would have stopped all together, not reverted to fire first. What do you know about lightning bending?"

"Not much. My firebending master wouldn't teach me. He said it was too much power and I was too emotional to control it," she said a little sulkily. "I tried it on my own, but I only made explosions. I stopped after I realized how dangerous it was. I know Mako can do it, though."

Tenzin nodded. "Yes, I expect that's true. In order to bend lightning, you must have inner peace and absolute control. I suspect that with your history as the avatar, you will never be able to achieve the peace needed. There is too much conflict in your past lives."

Korra pouted. When she still had her bending, she'd hoped someday she'd be able to do it, if for no other reason than because she learned Mako could, and her competitive side hated the fact that he could do something she couldn't.

"I'm surprised Mako can do it," he confessed. "Especially with his background. It shows a great level of maturity and control on his part."

Korra raised an eyebrow at him. "How do you know about his background?"

He coughed. "It isn't hard to learn about the up-and-coming rookies in the pro-bending tournaments. And what kind of guardian would I be if I didn't check up on the boys you're spending all your time with?"

She wanted to be angry at him, but didn't have the heart. Instead, she was surprisingly touched. Her own father would have done the same thing.

"What does that have to do with Zolt and Amon?" She asked, getting back to the topic at hand.

"It means that I believe Amon did something to disrupt that inner peace, which essentially disabled Zolt's lightning, and then went further to block his energy so he couldn't bend. Basically what his chi blockers already do, only with longer lasting results. Amon probably believes he's taking it away permanently because the block won't wear off unless it's purposely removed."

Korra absorbed all of this. "At the rally, he said the spirits were angry and gave him this power because the avatar has failed humanity and he is supposed to restore the balance."

Tenzin thought for a moment. "It is possible that the spirits are involved, or even taught him this technique," he said slowly. "But that does not mean he is in the right. It could be a malevolent spirit, simply wanting to spread chaos."

"What could I have done to fail humanity?"

"Nothing," he assured her firmly. "You are still too young for anything you have done or could have done to make such an impact."

Korra frowned. "Aang was younger than I am when he stopped the 100 Year War."

"But he didn't do it alone _and_ he was an exception _and_ you've been in training this whole time. No other avatar was near so young as either one of you. But that doesn't matter right now. What matters now is unblocking your energy."

"Can you do it?" The hope in her eyes was almost painful to look at.

"It will take time, but I think so."

"How much time?"

"It depends on how quickly you're able to untangle the coils. It may be very difficult."

"Aren't you going to be doing it, though?"

He shook his head solemnly. "No, you need to clear your own chi. If I were to do it, I could seriously hurt you without knowing."

Korra's spirits fell drastically. "I could barely get meditation down. How in the world am I going to clear up my energy or chi or whatever I need to do?"

"You'll manage somehow," he smiled encouragingly. "You managed to learn how to move like an airbender. I'll teach you how to think like one yet."

o-o-o-o

Mako leaned stiffly against the ferry's railing as Bolin paced in front of him, looking back to Air Temple Island, thoughts of Korra swirling around in his mind. He'd never seen her so scared and vulnerable, and that scared him. He needed the fiery girl who called him out when he was a jerk, or who called him stupid nicknames when he was irritating her.

He was surprised to realize he simply _needed_ her.

"There got to be something we can do," Bolin insisted, breaking through his thoughts.

"I know, I know." Mako sighed. "I just don't know what she needs."

They thought in silence for a long moment. The ferry nearly reached the pier when Mako finally spoke again, after a deep sigh. "I think the only think she needs that we can provide is a friend. A human friend. Did you know she told me her best friend is her polar bear dog?"

Bolin smirked in spite of himself. "That makes perfect sense."

"Doesn't it?" Mako smiled in remembrance of his own reaction and how similar he and his brother were. "But it's kind of sad, too, don't you think?"

"I suppose it is." Bolin stopped his pacing. "But what more can we do?"

"Something special. Nice. Something to show her we think of her as a person and not just the avatar. Something _Korra_ would love." He snapped his fingers. "I think I know what we can do."

* * *

_A/N Oh man I hope that chapter made sense. I'm incorporating my head canon and theories and I don't know how well I explained myself. But either way I hope you're still enjoying this. _


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